Blame it on the Mistletoe
by Jlk9506
Summary: Not my first fan fic but my first for Perry Mason and Della Street. Just a short Christmas piece. Big Big Thanks to Startwriting for amazing suggestions and encouragement... the driving force behind my finishing this. And to DNPLC who is also an AUsome encourager! You guys are the best!
1. Chapter 1

Mistletoe

Perry Mason tugged his coat collar up over his neck at the blast of unseasonably cool air racing toward him when he crossed the street at the corner of the Brent building. Yes, it was December 23rd but it was also southern California. Who would have expected the weather to turn so cool so quickly?

He muttered unkind things about his brother as he trudged against the wind towards the small toy store in the next block, but even as he did so Perry knew he was being unfair. Children often changed their minds or came up with new things to add to their Santa list. At least Perry lived in a large metropolis where toy stores were plentiful. The small store in the small town near where Perry grew up and most of his family still lived had long been sold out of the particular racing car about which his nephew had suddenly decided he would 'die', if he didn't get.

So, it was Uncle Perry to the rescue. Not that Perry minded. He was crazy about his brother's kids, all three of them. David and Robert, ages six and four, were great fun and the new baby, Emma, was a little doll.

"But boy do you owe me, James." He growled as a particularly sharp gust of icy wind cut through his coat easily. He dashed for the door of the store just a few yards away. Reaching for the handle he wrenched it open and found his forward momentum stopped by a blur of red running smack into him.

By virtue of the mass of his tall frame, Perry won that battle. Stunned, he looked down to see what he had hit, or rather who. A slender woman in a bright red coat and hat had quickly rolled from her backside, which she had landed on, to her knees and was gathering up the abundance of toys which had spilled from her bags. Perry quickly knelt to help her.

"I'm so sorry, Miss. I was trying to get out of the wind and I just wasn't look…" His voice trailed up as the face beneath the jaunty red knit cap looked up at him.

"No problem, chief. I'm used to it." Della Street smiled in surprise at her boss. "I thought you had finished your last minute shopping?"

"My nephew came up with one more toy that Santa just HAS to bring him." Perry grimaced.

"And Uncle Perry is just the person to help Santa out?" Della's eyes twinkled merrily.

"Ho Ho Ho!" Perry laughed. "And speaking of Santa…" He stared pointedly at the toys scattered all around them. "Are you applying for a new position?"

At that moment the owner of the store ran up to the couple. "Mr. Mason, is everything all right?"

"Just fine, Mr. Stein," Perry reassured the man he had done some legal work for a few years previously. "The wind ripped the door from my hand and I stumbled into this lovely young lady here who just happens to be my secretary." As he was speaking Perry stood up and held his hand out to Della.

"Please come upstairs… we have a small coffee bar. You can sit and relax while we repack the lady's purchases."

"No, no… that's okay…" Della started to protest but Perry nodded. "That sounds great."

Della sighed in resignation as Perry continued speaking with Mr. Stein, charming the man into finding the item that his nephew had requested and leaving it at the register for Mason to pay for on the way out.

"Very smooth, Chief" Della murmured out of the side of her mouth as she bent back over to pick up her handbag and the items that had spilled out of it.

Perry simply smiled and winked as he placed his hand on her lower back and guided her toward the salesgirl Mr. Stein had called to escort them upstairs. Della moved ahead of him and Perry paused briefly to take a covert but appreciative glance at her shapely bottom.

'One day you are going to have to tell the girl you are crazy about her, Mason,' his inner voice whispered.

"Coming, Counselor?" Della had stopped and was looking back over her shoulder, that maddening twinkle back in her eye at having caught her boss looking yet again. She found it amusing that he thought she didn't know that he was watching her. Della, on the other hand, was much more surreptitious in her appreciation of her employer.

Perry almost missed the slip of paper underneath a shelf edge, only catching sight of it out of the corner of his eye. He smoothly bent and snagged it without breaking stride.

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

"So, what about this last minute shopping?" Perry asked once he and Della were settled at a quiet table with steaming mugs of hot chocolate in their hands. "I thought you were going down to BoleroBeach for a quiet Christmas with your aunt."

"That was my plan but then influenza reared its ugly head."

"Ugh!"

"Yes. I offered to go anyway to take care of Aunt Mae but she wouldn't hear of it. She said that she had friends who could drop off anything she needed and she didn't want me exposed."

"You decided to play Santa instead?"

Della laughed softly… a smooth melodious low note that washed over Perry's body and sank into every pore.

"I was already… My friend, Marilee, works out at the Riverdale Home for Children. I try to help out when I can and I just thought it would be nice for the kids to have something to open from Santa… at least a little…"

Perry was amazed at himself again that he never realized until this moment what a tender heart his young secretary had. "Only a little?" He noted the touch of regret in her voice.

"Well, there are seventeen children there…"

With sudden insight, Perry realized why Della had left her shopping so late. He had hosted a Christmas lunch for his small office staff before closing the office for the holidays and proud of the success he had recently been enjoying, gifted each of them with a small Christmas bonus. Now he realized how Della had used hers.

"You go there often?"

"As often as time allows." Della's face shone with delight as she began telling him about the children, the ten boys and seven girls, she had gotten to know while visiting her friend. Perry couldn't believe the details that she remembered about each and every child, in spite of the fact that she remembered similar facts about all of his clients and even his family. In many ways he felt like he was seeing a side of his secretary that had heretofore been secret to him.

Being a normal red-blooded man, Perry recognized beauty when he saw it and Della Street was blessed with a great deal of physical loveliness. He knew she was quick witted and sassy, fearless and tough. But this tenderness… the light of her inner goodness shining through her… Suddenly she was a thousand times more attractive. He didn't even know it was possible, and started to melt slowly. Not from the hot chocolate in his hands, this glow started from the inside out, and it would seriously drive him off his chair towards her if given too much room.

'Stop it, Mason. She's your secretary.' Perry chastised himself. But the more she spoke, the more captivated he became… by her voice… her eyes… the way the red knit hat and soft chestnut curls framed her face…

"Eddie is fourteen, the oldest at the home. He's… all boy and I think Marilee is worried about him. A boy that age needs a male influence. Jack, her fiancé, is going to move in once they get married but he has another year in the army and is stationed in Japan. In the mean time Eddie is testing his boundaries. The younger boys look up to Eddie so they are acting out some too."

Perry forced his attention back to Della's words and finally found himself caught up in her stories about the children.

"…and Joey is the baby, only two. She has the biggest blue eyes and thick dark curls. Every time you ask her what she wants for Christmas she says a 'dowwy'. I found a nice little one that is just her size…"

"Oh, Ma'am!" The waitress exclaimed as she came back to check on her customers. "Your leg!"

They both looked down to see blood streaming down the back of Della's calf and onto the floor. Being a man of the world, Perry had noticed before how very feminine and shapely her calves were, from dancing and running around on her heels for him. He had watched her legs more than once, but this was the very first time he had a hard time tearing his eyes off of them. Even scratched, wounded like this, they were alluringly attractive and he watched them as if he had never realized before that they were a part of her.

"It's nothing, just a scratch. I don't even feel it. I must have hit one of the metal toys." Della quickly cut off Perry. "I'll go tend to it right now."

After a hard stare from Perry, that was meant more for himselft than for the poor waitress he directed it to, she hastily followed Miss Street, reporting back in a few moments that the cut was superficial and only needed a plaster.

Relieved, Perry sat and waited for Della, thinking about her generous spirit and wondering what he could do. He absently pulled the scrap of paper he'd picked up earlier from his pocket and glanced at it, then did a double take. He recognized all of the names as the children Della had been speaking of. A few moments for quick thoughts and a split second decision later, he was up and moving.

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

"Excuse me, Mr. Stein?"

"Ah, Miss Street? How are you? No ill effects from your fall?"

"None at all, Mr. Stein. Just a small scratch. But have you seen Mr. Mason? I can't seem to find him."

Richard Stein smiled. "Mr. Mason has gone to retrieve his car. I am to take you to meet him out back. Your packages are already there."

Della shook her head ruefully. "I told him I was fine. I could have taken a taxi home."

Stein shook his head. "No, no. A gentleman like Mr. Mason would never allow his lady to take a taxi when he was available. He is looking after you as you deserve."

"I'm just his secretary, Mr. Stein… but you are right that Mr. Mason is a gentleman. So I will accept gracefully."

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

"So, Miss Street, could I interest you in dinner? Perhaps a little pre holiday dancing, if your hurt leg allows you to?" Perry asked as he expertly maneuvered his car through late afternoon traffic.

"That sounds wonderful, but I really can't tonight."

'A date,' Perry immediately thought, disappointed.

"I'm already booked." Della turned and gestured toward the bags in the back seat of Perry's spacious Cadillac. "Presents don't wrap themselves. I'm taking the early bus to Riverdale so I need to finish them all tonight."

"Maybe you'd like some help?" The offer Perry blurted out surprised both Perry and Della.

Della raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow as she stared at her boss. "Somehow you don't strike me as the present wrapping type, Chief."

Perry shrugged. "I've wrapped a few gifts in my day. Maybe I just want to hear more about the children. Besides, that's a lot of wrapping for one person." His voice had taken on a wheedling tone.

"Well… I guess an extra pair of hands would be useful. We could pick up Chinese take-out from the place on the corner?"

"That sounds like the perfect evening!"

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

"Just put the bags on the sofa. Would you like something to drink?" Della asked nervously as the couple entered her apartment. Even though Mason had been there before he had never really been inside for any length of time. Her flat was neat and tidy but small, and Perry's large frame made the space shrink even more.

"Judging by the décor, eggnog or wassail? Wow! Look at this place! Everything is so festive!" A slender but beautifully decorated live tree stood at one end of the small fireplace, near the window. A nativity set graced the small mantle and several poinsettias were scattered about the room.

"Sorry… scotch or gin are the only offerings of this establishment." Della smiled. "I don't do a lot of entertaining."

"A beautiful girl like you? That boss of yours must really be a slave driver."

"You have no idea." Della laughed. "If you will excuse me for a few minutes?"

While Della was gone Perry started to unpack various packages, curious to see what his secretary had picked out for the children she had talked so knowingly about. He lined each gift up, boys separated from girls, by what he assumed was age appropriateness, then surveyed his handiwork. 'She spent her entire bonus and then some more,' he thought as he assessed the purchases.

In her bedroom, Della gave herself one last check in the mirror. To say she was nervous about entertaining her boss would have been an understatement. She had been more than surprised when he offered to help her wrap gifts, but truth be told, she was grateful for the help. And the ride home. She knew that travelling on the bus tomorrow with all of those wrapped gifts was going to be extremely difficult. Fleetingly she wondered why Perry wasn't spending the evening with his latest flame, a young female attorney who Della cared nothing at all for, not that she ever said anything or gave any indication. That just wasn't her place. But come to think of it, there hadn't been any calls routed through her from this Laura in several months and Perry hadn't mentioned her either. Shrugging her shoulders, she gave her hair one last pat and headed back to her hosting duties.

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

"You look fantastic, Miss Street." Perry grinned widely at Della when she walked back into the room. She'd changed from her work clothes into a green and red plaid skirt and slippers, and a tight red sweater that clung to every curve. He had to fight back the whistle that leapt to his lips.

"Why thank you, Mr. Mason! I see you have been busy." She gestured at the gifts and the furniture he had moved out of the way to create a large work space in front of the small fireplace.

"I found the wrapping paper and tape in the bags but I wasn't sure where you kept your scissors and I didn't want to just start digging through drawers…"

Della retrieved the scissors from her utility drawer and they settled on the floor with the first gift between them.

"Joey, right? Wants a dolly?"

Mason could tell that Della was pleased he remembered. "That's right. Josephine to be exact but she is so tiny she needs a smaller name. Marilee called her Josie but Katie, the next youngest child, pronounced it as Joey and it stuck." Together they carefully measured out the paper, Perry holding while Della cut. Folding and taping took a few more minutes when Della accidently caught Perry's tie in the packaging and it had to be redone.

The tie was quickly removed, two buttons coming open with its removal. Perry picked up the next gift, a boxed set of beginner's books. "Tell me about Katie…"

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

"Eleven little presents all taken care of!" Perry surveyed the pile of packages with satisfaction.

"But there are still six larger gifts to deal with," Della reminded her boss, pointing at the remaining stack.

"Hmm… you do have a point, Miss Street. I have been pondering this one all evening." Perry picked up a hockey stick. "And I still haven't come up with anything!"

Della's nose wrinkled as she surveyed the oddly shaped item. "I have an idea."

"Of course you do! That's why you are in charge!"

"Ha, ha." Della smirked at Perry as she stood and moved to a closet. After digging around for a few minutes she emerged with some cardboard and a bottle of glue.

"We can make a frame of cardboard to hold the stick and make it square."

Perry wasn't convinced but he didn't have a better suggestion so he helped her cut the cardboard into strips and shape it around the stick. "Now, who is this for?"

"Mike. He's twelve and he loves street hockey, mostly because Eddie loves it and Mike really looks up to him."

A look of alarm hit Perry's face. "So we have to do another stick?"

Della couldn't help but laugh as she handed Perry the glue. "No, chief. Eddie already has a stick. I got him skates, thinking maybe Mike can use his old ones…"

"You really thought this out, didn't you? I'm impressed, Miss Street. And this glue… definitely not from the school supply section."

"If I glue something I expect it to stay glued. Right there…" Della pointed at an overlapping corner of cardboard… Perry dutifully spread the liquid adhesive over the two sides then stuck them together. They immediately flew apart, spreading droplets of glue over the surrounding paper. They looked at it for a while, both lost in thought.

"Maybe if we tape it?" Perry offered.

Della grabbed the scotch tape and pulled out a long piece. While Perry held the pieces of packaging together she attempted to wrap it around them. "Uh… you have to move your fingers… not that way…"

"Just move it over here…"

"That wrinkles it. Just lift right here… Oh shoot, let me get another piece…"

Many pieces of tape later and both Perry and Della using their arms like contortionists the material finally seemed to be staying together. Perry squeezed the hand that was lying next to his on the corner. "Teamwork, my dear!"

"And a whole lot of tape!" Della eyed the bits of tape stuck to both of them. She reached over to his thigh and brushed a piece away.

"Let this dry for a bit. We can wrap the next gift and come back." Perry leaned toward the remaining gifts, stretching to reach the top one. It was just out of reach so he rocked up on his knees to close the distance, only to find Della being propelled after him. He reached out to break her forward moment, only to find her arm yanked along with his. She yelped.

"Damn!" Perry swore softly as he righted them both on their knees. Cardboard hung from their hands. They gingerly pulled their hands away from each other, but they didn't budge. They pulled harder while Perry yanked at the dangling cardboard. Della yelped again as the glue, refusing to yield, pulled at her palm.

"Well…" signed Perry as he stared at their hands glued together. "We seem to be in a bit of a predicament."

"Yes." Della's voice sounded like the start of a chuckle.

"I guess that means I have to stay here tonight."

A silent pause filled the room before Della spoke. "You mean spend the night here?" Her cheeks were faintly pink and she couldn't or wouldn't meet her boss's eyes.

"No," Perry quickly protested, immediately concerned that Della might be offended, even to the point of quitting. "That's not what I mean…"

"It's what you said…"

"Well… yes… I just meant that being stuck together and all I couldn't exactly leave so I'd have to sleep here and… and… Shut up, Mason!" He gave Della his best charming little boy smile. "My foot is so far in my mouth I'm chewing on my knee, aren't I?"

Della laughed heartily. " And how does it taste, Chief?"

"Like smelly socks…"

They both laughed until tears were rolling down their cheeks, Della leaning against Perry's shoulder for support. Perry was simply grateful that Della hadn't taken his random statement too seriously. Although… Perry quickly shook THAT thought out of his head.

"So how do we get out of this predicament?" Della asked, eyebrows raised.

Perry thought a moment. "Maybe hot water would loosen it?"

"I guess anything is worth trying."

Perry shifted one leg from knee to foot in preparation to stand, bumping into Della trying to do the same thing. "Hang on." He wrapped his free arm around her waist and pulled her close then stood, taking her with him. "There."

They made their way to Della's very small kitchen. After ten minutes standing at the sink with their hands submerged in hot water Perry was ready to concede that his idea was a failure.

"Maybe the hardware store has something to dissolve it?" Della suggested as she dried their hands with a towel.

"That's a good idea… the bottle! Let's check and see what it says first."

Perry pondered the tiny writing on the glue bottle for so long that Della began to tap her foot. "Do I need to make you an appointment with your optometrist, Chief?"

"There is nothing wrong with my eyesight, young lady. The printing on this bottle is incredibly small!"

Della bit her lip to keep from laughing as Perry squinted his eyes tightly and twisted the bottle into the light.

"Aha! Do you have fingernail polish remover?"

"Of cour… Yes… I have some." Della's cheeks pinked up prettily, Perry noted.

"Then shall we get it?"

"It's uhm… it's in my bath room."

"I'll close my eyes if your room is messy." Perry teased.

Della snapped her lips shut on her sharp retort and made a face at Perry before heading toward the smart hall, dragging him behind.

Perry thought that Della's bedroom was charming, not that he had much opportunity to see it as she dragged him through. The room was spotless, the perfectly made bed covered in hues of pale blue and green evoking the sea. A small bookcase filled one corner. 'A very calm room, relaxing,' he thought. The room just 'felt' like Della Street.

The tiny bathroom was also neat and tidy, her cabinets perfectly organized, not that he would have expected anything less from his ultra efficient secretary. She knelt and reached deep into the cupboard, her sweater stretching tightly over her shapely chest, he noticed appreciatively. Her fingers must have locked onto the bottle unerringly because long before he was ready to stop enjoying the view she was standing up and tugging him back into and through her bedroom toward her kitchen.

'She definitely needs a bigger bed,' was Perry's final thought as the lights snapped off and they headed back down the hallway.


	3. Chapter 3

Just in case anyone thinks the glue thing is too far fetched... I managed to do it to myself last week, after I had already written this. One perfectly placed drop of nail glue in just the right spot somehow migrated to the opposite hand and got my palm and fingers. They didn't dry before I got it undone but I did have to laugh. Thanks startwriting for that great suggestion!

Chapter Three

"You know…" Della said as they twisted around each other trying to get a bowl out of the bottom cabinet. "This is going to be amusing in a few days."

"Actually," Perry admitted grudgingly, "it's pretty hilarious now. Sort of…" He trailed off as Della bent over, her shapely bottom pressing into his thigh. He couldn't help but look appreciatively… and feel… appreciatively…could he?

"Ouch!" The thunk of Della's head hitting the top of the cabinet as she came up echoed through the kitchen. He suppressed a snorting laugh. She gave Perry an evil glare. "Hilarious…" she responded sardonically.

He took the bowl from her and placed it in the sink then lifted their hands into it and with his free hand, poured the polish remover over it.

"Think positive thoughts."

"Thinking is difficult with my head spinning." Della griped.

Perry tilted her head down and began rubbing the slight bump there. "Better?" He leaned forward slightly and touched the spot with his lips.

"Yes, Daddy," she responded sassily. Trying to raise her head, she bumped Perry's chin, forcing his face upward.

When he looked back down at her a huge smile split his face. "You should have been an elf, Miss Street. Your decorations are perfect."

"Thank you," Della said, glancing around her small living space as she wondered why Perry had dropped the offhand compliment at that particular moment.

He must have read her thoughts on her face because he chuckled as he pointed straight up.

A sprig of mistletoe wrapped with a red ribbon hung from the light fixture just above their heads.

"Gotcha!" Perry teased, lifting her chin with his thumb and forefinger.

"Oh…" Della's cheeks pinked up again. She must have blushed more in one evening, the evening, than in her entire life. "That's just decoration. It doesn't mean…"

"Now, Miss Street, after everything else that has happened this evening we aren't going to run the risk of messing with any more traditions, are we?"

Della's mind raced. 'Don't make a big deal of it, Della.' Nodding, she puckered her lips in an exaggerated fashion.

Keeping his mood as playful as Della's, Perry bent slightly and brushed his pursed lips across hers, the gentlest of touches… barely enough to even be felt.

And the earth moved.

Lightening flashed.

Something akin to electricity coursed through his body as he gasped, his eyes flying open to stare at the feminine face just an inch from his.

Della's eyes were still closed, her lips half parted. Slowly she opened them, the hazel orbs filled with wonder as she stared back into the masculine face just an inch from hers. She had obviously felt 'it' too.

No words were uttered, no sound was made… but together they instinctively moved back into each other. This time lips touched fully, parted and nibbled on their counterpart. Perry was pleased to feel Della as fully engaged in the kiss as he was.

Della was shocked, not at Perry's gentle sweep across her lips but at the intense feeling that resulted from it. She had long accepted that she found her employer extremely attractive but had deliberately buried any further fantasizing along that line. Not that her fantasies could have ever compared to the real experience. An inner voice that sounded suspiciously like her mother's, was screaming at her to stop kissing her boss at once… but Della didn't want too. She wanted to keep kissing him forever. Stepping closer still, Della lifted her arm and wrapped it around his back, her fingers sliding up onto the soft hair on the nape of his neck.

A low moan vibrated in Perry's throat at the feel of Della's soft body pressing into his. 'She's your secretary!' his rational brain cautioned but he paid it not the slightest bit of attention. The beautiful woman in his arms had become so much more to him in just the last few hours, allowing him to see her beautiful heart and caring nature. Her desirability had increased a thousand fold without him even being aware of it.

Perry wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer still.

"Perry…" Della murmured around his lips, obviously reluctant to break their oral connection, "…our hands…"

They pulled apart at Della's words, Perry now grasping what she had said just moments before. The nail polish had softened the glue, allowing them to pull their hands apart as the need to embrace took over.

"Brilliant idea, Chief," Della took a step back as reason began to return.

Recognizing that they both were a bit unsettled by the embrace they had just shared Perry didn't try to hold her. Instead he picked up the damp towel lying by the sink and lifting Della's hand, he held it under running water then carefully wiped away the last vestiges of glue and acetone.

"Thank you, Chief."

Perry simply smiled and raised her hand to his lips, but instead of kissing the back he flipped it over and pressed his lips to her palm. The muffled moan that emerged as a sigh delighted him. It was enough for now.

"Della…"

This time it was she who touched his lips with her hand, fingers pressing over his lips to shush him.

"Blame it on the mistletoe?" She whispered as she smiled at him, a smile that made Perry long to pull her back into his arms.

Perry nodded then pulled her fingers away. He obviously wanted to say something more but after a moment's pause he simply looked at the clock. "It's almost nine… what about that Chinese food you promised me?"

Della smiled her gratitude. "I've got a menu in the drawer. We can call it in if you don't mind going to pick it up."

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

With no free hands to knock, Perry kicked the door to Della's apartment several times. He couldn't wait to see her again. He'd only been gone a half hour but he missed her.

"Chief?" Opening the door, Della eyed the boxes in his arms. "That's a whole lot of Chinese food…"

"I stopped by the liquor store and picked up a couple of bottles of wine and a nice brandy… and the market for a few dessert options…"

"A few? Perry!" Della had started unloading the market box "If we eat all of this I will gain twenty pounds! And this isn't all dessert…"

"Your refrigerator is empty."

"I'm going out of town for the holid…"

"You were going out of town. Now you need food. You don't need to lose any more weight."

"I haven't lost weight." Della protested, even though she knew that she had lost several pounds in the last few months.

"And my New Years resolution will be to keep you on a more regular dinner schedule."

That statement earned a disbelieving chuckle from Della but she simply kept putting food up.

"Corkscrew?" He opened the drawer she pointed at and found the tool, soon popping the wine cork with expert skill. He filled the two glasses that were placed on the counter while Della pulled out plates and utensils and put them on a tray with the containers of Chinese food. With both of them moving about, the tiny kitchen felt even smaller, but Della had realized while Perry was gone that without his presence her apartment seemed… empty. She was filled with happiness at his return.

While her boss had been out Della had tried not to scrutinize what had happened between them but it had been difficult. The first brief caress could have easily been brushed off, but the kiss that had followed? That close embrace had been real and solid, no fleeting moment. And, heaven help her, she wanted to feel his arms around her again.

But then what? That was the question that Della couldn't help but confront. By the end of her lonely half hour she had decided that risking the loss of their friendship and working relationship wasn't an option for her. She was strong enough to move forward and put the clinch out of her mind. And then he walked back through the door and all of her resolve flew out the window. Spending the last few hours with Perry in such relaxed surroundings had allowed them to open up to each other, get to know more about each other than they ever had before. As much as she respected the great legal mind that was her boss, the interest he had shown and the help he had offered her this evening had shown her a striking new, and yes, enticing facet of his personality.

"Let me carry that. You bring the wine," Perry took the tray from her and headed toward the small dining table just beyond the kitchen. Glancing back he saw that Della was still unmoving, obviously deep in thought.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

"Get a move on, woman! Those presents aren't going to wrap themselves!"

Della shook her head and chuckled at the rather large boy she worked for. She could only hope that the children got half as much joy in the unwrapping as Perry was taking in the wrapping.

"I wrapped three more while you were getting the food." Della took another sip of wine and continued to load dirty dishes onto a tray.

"So just three more to go," Perry nudged Della out of the way and, lifting the tray, walked the few feet into the kitchen. "Those will keep."

"I'm going to be out at the home all day tomorrow and I do NOT want to come back tomorrow night to a sink full of dirty dishes. Besides, there are only two presents left. I am not touching that hockey stick again!" Della wrinkled her nose in disgust, eliciting a chuckle from deep in Perry's chest.

"You just can't stand for something to be 'unorganized', can you, Miss Street?" Perry asked in his best cross examination voice. But then he stuck his tongue out at her.

"That's true," Della said, her voice full of laughter. She definitely liked the 'silly' side of Mr. Mason. "But you know, my boss prizes my organization skills."

"That's what he prizes? That boss of yours must not be too bright." Perry backed up to allow Della access to the sink.

"About some things, perhaps," Della agreed as she turned on the faucet and added dish soap to the flowing water.

"I'll dry," Perry offered. "Where do you keep the dish towels?"

Della stuck her thumb over her shoulder. "Under that cabinet."

"This one? Or this one?"

Exasperated, Della turned. Perry was standing behind her holding a clean dry dish towel. She raised her face, looking at him quizzically, unable to move as his face moved closer.

Once again their lips met… and locked… and held…

"Blame it on the mistletoe," Perry whispered as they parted, his finger pointing upward.

A beautiful smile lit Della's face. "The mistletoe…" she agreed softly. But the smile quickly left as Perry's eyes widened in horror. "Wha…"

"The water!"

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

Once Perry had been banished from the small kitchen as too much of a distraction, after claiming yet another kiss, Della was able to quickly clean up the water that had overflowed onto the floor and get the dishes washed and dried. Perry kept her entertained by playing imaginary street hockey in her living room, brandishing Eddie's stick at her every so often. When she finally moved to join him, Perry had his back to her.

"What are you up to now, Mr. Mason?"

Perry turned and, with a flourish, presented the hockey stick to her, a bright red ribbon tied around its top. The triumphant grin on his face was priceless.

Della couldn't help but laugh as she lightly applauded him. "Perfect, Chief… simply perfect."

"Perfect," Perry echoed and the way his eyes were drinking her in, Della knew he wasn't talking about the gift. With difficulty, she tore herself loose from his gaze and swallowed.

"Two to go." She grabbed a gift and dropped to her knees by the gift wrapping paper, but not before Perry noted the faint blush on her cheeks. As he knelt by her side she paused to lift her glass to her lips, elegantly taking a sip of wine. Perry was hypnotized by the movement, the shape of her lips and the way they touched the side of the glass. Her blush deepened.

Not wanting to embarrass her further, Perry turned his attention to the items Della was arranging in the box.

"What are these for? Or rather who?" He asked as he held up a miniature bed.

"These are for Jenny… all the girls in a way. Marilee is very creative on a budget. She got some cardboard boxes and we put them together into a makeshift dollhouse for the girls to play with. I thought they might like some 'real' furniture to use. Jenny spends hours arranging and rearranging things. I think maybe she is imagining the days before her parents died…"

Perry heard the catch in Della's voice and squeezed her hand tightly. Was there no end to the compassion this wonderful woman felt for others? "I'm sure she will love it."

Working together in sync, the glue bottle safely store away out of sight, they were done with the last gifts in just a few minutes. Perry stretched as Della put the wrapped packages back into bags she would use to carry them onto the bus. "This is going to be fun getting on the bus," she remarked ruefully. "Wait… I don't recognize this one. Did we wrap this? Oh dear, what if the toy store got someone else's things mixed up with mine?"

Perry moved to her side to inspect the mystery package. "I think that is the car for my nephew. I must have grabbed it from the car when I got all the other bags out."

"Uncle Santa to the rescue," Della mused again, a pretty smile touching her lips.

Perry stared at her, completely besotted until he noticed she was beginning to be uncomfortable. "Mind if I use your phone? I just thought of something I need for Paul to check on."

"Of course, Chief. I need to… excuse myself for a moment anyway."

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

Alone in her bedroom with the door closed, Della stared into the mirror over her dresser. She almost didn't recognize the woman staring back at her. That woman had pink cheeks and red lips that looked as if they were begging to be kissed. Her eyes sparkled with a gleam that Della recognized as desire.

Della's hand flew to her cheeks, her eyes closing tight. She was falling for Perry, her boss and her friend, and she was falling fast, hard and deep. After only a few kisses… but oh what kisses they'd been, she acknowledged ruefully. Boyfriends had never been in short supply and Della had been kissed many times… but nothing compared to what she had shared with Perry in the last few hours. And if his kisses were so spectacular what would it be like to…

'HE'S YOUR BOSS!' There was her mother's voice again, echoing through her head. 'Yes,' Della acknowledged silently, 'but he is so much more to me… even before the kisses. What is wrong with exploring that… if we are careful…'

Decision made she smiled at her reflection and walked away.

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

When Della returned to the living room she found Perry kneeling in front of her small fireplace, coaxing the fire he had just lit into a comfortable blaze. Most of the lights had been turned off.

"That's nice."

He startled then turned at the sound of her honeyed voice. "I hope it's okay… I thought it was getting a little cool and…" he gestured at the two snifters half full of amber liquid warming on the hearth, "I needed something to warm the brandy."

Perry held out his hand to Della. She took his offering and allowed him to help her to her knees beside him.

"Chief… Perry…" She started to speak but then he offered her one of the glasses and held his out to her.

"A toast…to…mistletoe… and to… exploration?"

Della nodded. "Leisurely exploration?" She presented her glass to him hesitantly but to her relief he smiled and touched the snifters together. They drank.

"We'll just take our time and see where this goes… Baby." Perry carefully pronounced the last word, his voice soft, his eyes sincere and at ease. He felt comfortable here… by the fireplace… with her. Yes, they would take their time. There was plenty of that. He took her snifter and then sat both glasses back on the hearth. "But what fun we can have on the way."

It was then that Della saw the small sprig of mistletoe that Perry had attached to the mantle above them. She couldn't help but sigh in delight as he pulled her to him once again.

~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~ ~pd~

The flames had long since died, leaving only the burning embers lighting the room, but their glow shed a lovely light on Della's features. Perry stared down at the woman sleeping in his arms in wonder, loving the play of shadows across her face.

They'd kissed… and kissed… sipped brandy… and kissed some more, desire growing all the while. Without really recalling how, Perry had realized they were lying together on the floor in front of the fireplace, Della's arms wrapped around his waist beneath his untucked shirt and one of his hands beneath her skirt and climbing up her silky bare thigh. It had taken every ounce of strength that he possessed to pull back from her at that point but he couldn't let go of her completely. Long arms stretched to a nearby chair and pulled down a pillow and light blanket. Turning Della to her side facing the fire, he'd spooned up behind her, one arm circling her waist and the other her shoulders. As she'd leaned her head back toward him he nuzzled her hair.

"Tell me about your favorite Christmas," he'd whispered. And she'd told him… shared her favorite Christmas memories… Sleigh rides… snowball fights… family dinners… and of the beautiful doll she'd received on her seventh Christmas. He had also shared when she turned the question around, and soon had her laughing with stories of the many ways he and his brother had tried to find and open their Christmas presents early.

And now here they were, wrapped up in each others arms like Christmas gifts. Snuggling closer into Della's back, Perry realized how much his life had changed in just a few hours. This afternoon he'd bumped into his attractive secretary in the toy store. Tonight he was embracing the woman he was suddenly sure that he would love the rest of his life.

He drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the surprises that he had surreptitiously planned for her the next day… and of the great adventure they were about to embark on together.

~fin~

(?)

So I'll leave Perry and Della to their dreams for now… but there is always next Christmas...

Thank you all so very much!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!


End file.
